Chelsea: Injury expert says £250k-a-week star 'progressing well' | OneFootball

Chelsea full-backs Reece James and Ben Chilwell should be available for Graham Potter’s squad when the Stamford Bridge outfit return to Premier League action, according to injury expert Ben Dinnery.

Both players have missed out on Gareth Southgate’s England squad for the World Cup due to their respective injury issues.

As per Sky Sports, James was excepted to be sidelined for eight weeks with a knee problem picked up in the Blues’ 2-0 Champions League win at AC Milan back in October, meaning that his chances of making Southgate’s England squad for the World Cup were effectively over.

Just a few weeks later, Chilwell also suffered an injury of his own that shattered his World Cup dreams with the Three Lions, having pulled up with a hamstring problem in Potter’s side’s 2-1 Champions League victory over Dinamo Zagreb at the end of November, as per Sky Sports.

With the Premier League having taken a break for the World Cup in Qatar, both James, who reportedly earns £250k-per-week as per Spotrac, and Chilwell have been able to focus on recovering from their injuries and recuperating in time for the side’s Premier League return against Bournemouth on 27th December.

And Dinnery believes that both players should not have an issue in being fit for the resumption of England’s top flight at the end of the year.

What has Dinnery said about James and Chilwell?

Dinnery told GIVEMESPORT: “Reece James is progressing. I think both players [James and Chilwell] in reality the World Cup just came a little bit too quickly for them.

“In terms of that Premier League resumption, that shouldn’t be an issue.

“Reece James was in and around six to eight weeks, [he’s] probably towards the latter stages of that recovery rehab period. That injury was picked up in October.”

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Will James and Chilwell make an immediate return to the side?

When all of Chelsea’s full-backs are fit, both James and Chilwell would likely be Potter’s preferred starters at right-back and left-back respectively.

James’ showings in the Premier League so far this season have earned him an impressive average SofaScore rating of 7.30 for the campaign, ranking him as the Blues’ third-highest-rated performer.

Chilwell has found regular football hard to come by over the last 12 months, having suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury back in November 2021 as per Sky Sports and will be desperate to regain his fitness in time to get a regular run of game time under Potter this season.

Therefore, Dinnery’s news suggests that it’s highly likely both full-backs will be able to make a significant contribution to the second half of Chelsea’s season, and will both be aiming to force their way back into Southgate’s England squad come the March international break next year.